BANGKOK, THAILAND – Former national police chief Sereepisuth Temeeyaves sharpened his nationalist message and reform pledges as his small Seri Ruam Thai Party sought momentum in the final phase of the election campaign.
Hardline stance on Cambodia border conflict
On the campaign trail, the 77-year-old focused heavily on the border region with Cambodia, warning that conflict there would not resemble wars in Europe but jungle warfare that could flare up at any time. Drawing on his own combat experience against past communist insurgencies, he argued that any confrontation with Cambodia would have to be pushed “to Phnom Penh” to end it decisively and avoid recurring clashes, further losses for the Thai military and ongoing insecurity for residents.
Calls to reclaim former territories
Sereepisuth said Thailand should seek to take back areas he described as historically Thai.
“We must take everything back – Battambang, Siem Reap, Koh Kong – because these once were our territories,”
said Sereepisuth Temeeyaves, party leader. He compared his vision to potential US operations in Venezuela and said Bangkok could act in a similar way.
Demilitarised zones and shared areas
After a military push, Sereepisuth said he wanted to force buffer zones along the frontier. Under his plan, Cambodia should withdraw 1 to 1.5 kilometres from the border, after which jointly used zones would be negotiated, “perhaps one province per area” for each side.
Police reform at the centre of his platform
Beyond border policy, the former police chief presented reform of the Royal Thai Police as a core pledge, criticising the 2022 amendment to the Police Act as a failure. He cited the 2023 appointment of Pol Gen Torsak Sukvimol as national police chief as proof the changes had not worked.
Sereepisuth accused Torsak of lacking leadership experience, rising too quickly through the ranks and facing unresolved questions linked to gambling and corruption cases. This, he argued, showed the reform “did not work” and that genuine change had to start with people in the force. He noted that non-commissioned officers were being recruited with a high-school diploma, short training and a starting salary of about 15,000 baht, which he considered insufficient for professional performance.
Higher education standards for officers
He called for rank-and-file police to hold at least a bachelor’s degree in law, political science or other disciplines to resolve citizens’ problems competently. For commissioned officers, he proposed admitting candidates with legal qualifications or a master’s degree, arguing that with credentials on a par with judges and prosecutors, their salaries could also be raised so police could better assist the public.
Reshaping the Police Cadet Academy
Sereepisuth described the Police Cadet Academy in its current form as oversized and said military prep schools and five-year training programmes were a waste of state funds. Instead, he suggested that candidates first complete a bachelor’s degree, then undertake two years of specialised training at the academy in areas such as law, technology, information science or other fields matching modern crime.
Graduates, he said, could then receive a master’s degree.
“Only then will we have quality police officers,”
said Sereepisuth, arguing that better qualifications would strengthen law enforcement.
Welfare pledges and domestic agenda
Running parallel to his security and policing messages, Sereepisuth promoted 12 key programmes. These included stronger national defence, police reform “for the people”, free education and cancellation of student loans, a citizens’ pension of 3,000 baht per month and disability support of 3,000 baht monthly.
Other promises covered a drug-free country as a national agenda, fighting corruption and criminal influence, free nationwide health care via a single ID card, land allocation for housing and livelihoods, weapons seizures “to stop deaths”, construction of a dam for agriculture and flood and drought prevention, and raising the retirement age for civil servants to 65.
Coalition ambitions and limited prospects
Politically, Sereepisuth said he did not want to align automatically with any particular camp. If his party joined a coalition, he would seek a post as deputy prime minister in charge of the Royal Thai Police or as defence minister to address border questions with Cambodia and the role of Senate president Hun Sen.
He acknowledged that he did not expect many seats, noting the party had fielded constituency candidates in only 21 districts and relied mainly on the party list.
“I admit that this time I have absolutely no momentum on social media,”
said Sereepisuth, adding that he still hoped for a late shift in voter sentiment.
Appeal to undecided voters
Sereepisuth vowed to continue campaigning tirelessly despite the odds. He urged undecided voters not to back the traditional parties again.
“If you vote for our party, there will be real and positive changes – without doubt,”
said Sereepisuth, framing his hardline security stance and reform agenda as a break with the political past.